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LOL, eric gray got fired for being a mavs fan.
http://blogs.mysanantonio.com/weblogs/courtside/
Richard Oliver: KTKR producer fired
Express-News columnist Richard Oliver is in Denver for tonight's Game 4 in the first-round playoff series between the Nuggets and the Spurs. He sends along the latest news and notes:
Tough talk
The fallout from last week's controversial skit on "Sports Talk San Antonio" on KTKR-AM 760 came down hard today when the show's executive producer, Eric Gray, was let go by the station.
In an internal e-mail to station employees, obtained by the Express-News, Market Manager Matt Martin announced the move, adding that Gray's duties would be "temporarily absorbed by current staff members until further notice."
The program's co-hosts, Walter Pasacrita and Jeff Vexler, have been removed from all pregame and postgame programming by the Spurs. Both, however, are scheduled to be back on the air this afternoon. Pasacrita has delivered sports updates throughout the day on WOAI-1200 AM, where he serves as sports director.
Vexler, responding to an e-mail, refused to comment on his situation.
George King, operations manager for KTKR, said, "Our station's policy is we don't comment on any employee matters."
The station is under fire after the broadcast of an alarming segment that included a faked interview with Denver guard Allen Iverson. In the bit, which ran just before Game 2, an Iverson impersonator responded to questions with answers perceived as inflammatory and racist. Gray produced the skit.
In the aftermath, Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich bowed out of any further weekly appearances on KTKR, at least through the postseason.
According to several people who heard the broadcast, including sources close to the station, the fabricated chat included references to Iverson and teammate Carmelo Anthony providing the Spurs something from their own "special stash" before Game 1, which Denver won. The segment also included a mention of Iverson and other players cruising the River Walk looking for sex with "Mexican" women.
LOL, eric gray got fired for being a mavs fan.
damn i can't believed they fired him, i did not see that coming
In "Post-Imus" pc land that bit should never have aired. I am not sure it would've gone over well if th Imus thing hadn't happened. I did radio for a while...That bit was horrible on so many levels. Glad the Spurs and the station responded the way they did.
These guys are truly some "dumb s"
Market Manager Matt MartinMarket Manager Matt MartinMarket Manager Matt Martin
won't be long before the other two corn dogs are gone.......
I never knew who Eric Gray was, and guess I'll never know who he is.
dust in the wind...like the mavs
I did not hear the fake interview but the minute I heard about it, I thought to myself, that sounds like something Eric Gray would come up with. I had gotten the impression Eric had been trying to make the Ticket in SA similar to the Ticket 1310 in Dallas with a over-the-top approach. They do stuff similar to this at that station.
The insertion of beeps into taped interviews to make them sound like a censored profanity (when it really isn't) is another example of something that could have upset some coach or player who might have overheard it and been offended.
Remember they use to do that when they would bring out Frank Callendo from Mad TV, saying "oh we're going to have John Madden on." But this, unlike Callendo's was entirely different. They all should be let go. If you're blaming all three, then you should fire all three, not just one.
Radio skit puts producer out of a job
Web Posted: 04/30/2007 10:40 PM CDT
Richard Oliver
Express-News
DENVER — The fallout from last week's controversial skit on KTKR-AM 760, which included a fabricated interview with Denver Nuggets guard Allen Iverson, came down hard Monday when an executive producer was let go by the station.
The dismissal of Eric Gray, who oversaw "Sports Talk San Antonio" and created the inflammatory segment, was announced to employees in one of two internal e-mails obtained by the San Antonio Express-News.
Matt Martin, a Clear Channel Communications vice president and market manager for KTKR, declined additional comment when reached, but was succinct in a note to staffers.
"As you might be aware," he wrote, "on (Wednesday) during "Sports Talk San Antonio," an on-air parody was aired that may have been viewed as insensitive. KTKR does not condone or approve inappropriate content or language."
The skit, which involved an Iverson impersonator answering questions on the air, included references to drugs, seeking sex from "Mexican" women on the River Walk and the accidental shooting of a homeless man who turned out to be an "illegal alien."
The program's co-hosts, Walter Pasacrita and Jeff Vexler, who also have control of on-air material, received no apparent discipline from the station. Both were on the air for Monday's talk show and avoided mention of the controversy.
Pasacrita, also sports director for WOAI-AM 1200, provided scheduled sports updates throughout the day.
The Spurs, however, have cut all ties with Pasacrita and Vexler, including forbidding their involvement with any of the team's programming for postseason games. Additionally, Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich has pulled out of his weekly call-in sessions with the station.
Vexler, in an e-mail, refused comment. "I'd love to," he said, "but I can't."
Pasacrita couldn't be reached for comment.
George King, operations manager for KTKR, cited station policy forbidding any discussion on employee matters. Martin, in his e-mails to personnel, issued a similar gag order, directing all interview requests to his office.
Eric Sebastian, director of media relations for the Nuggets, said the team was aware of the situation. Over the weekend, Iverson expressed irritation over the skit.
"We're pretty satisfied with the way the Spurs handled it," Sebastian said. "They're a first-class organization in the way they operate."
Gray's duties, Martin told his employees, would be "temporarily absorbed by current staff members until further notice."
[email protected]
No comment and pretending like it never happened?
Why not just say we're sorry for airing the skit and it was insensitive so we apologize.
At least address the situation.
That's just stupid. It already came out so there's no use in the no comment card.
I agee kris. Even though Gray created the copy and served as the synergist in the deal...Vex and Walter carried through with it. They should accept responsibility for their part in it and apologize.
It's as if they're getting a "pass" and Gray is the fallguy in this, it's dumb. I would be shocked if Vex and Walter are allowed to skate through this.
i heard it and thought it was outlandish but not racist....every1 knows AI has had some moments with the media and didnt he beat up a girl or something with a gun. they just took it a little too far.
sux they got fired...it wasnt too bad whit i have no doubt carmelo and AI smoke weed....IF its ok to kill any1 who snitches whats wrong with this skit which was obviously outlandish.
just a mexicans view on it
they all need to be fired, not because of that skit but because they suck in general. honestly, i think they should have been fired for stealing the 'man laws' bit, no talent hacks!
They have a tough job. I know it's not physically hard to do what they do and talking about sports for a living should be a piece of cake but, coming up with fresh things to keep a show interesting in a one team market has to be tough. I could listen to Spurs talk all the time but most of the audience wants to hear about other things like the Cowboys or even baseball.
When things get slow they end up going for the sophmoric humor and this time it blew up in their faces.
They may not lose their jobs over this but they are not talented enough to survive on their own merit either. KTKR probably doens't pay for sh*t either.
I know this has been covered by the media for the past several days. Has any Clear Channel station even mentioned it or are they all involved in a news blackout? Yesterday afternoon 760 didn't mention it at the top of the show and 1200 focused on fiesta being crowded (I was shocked at that breaking news).
Eric Gray's MySpace page shows he is clearly milking it, calling himself the "Don Imus of SA". Vex and Walter are funny, and while I think Walter's comments are way off base, he does offer an East coast point of view. He's is clueless when it comes to college football.
Vex is still inexperienced, but I do like listening to his thoughts. The show is funny, although I didn't hear this specific skit. They've done this before, and I believe Eric Gray was trying to emulate the Ticket in Dallas, which supposedly does this all the time.
Whatever they do, I pray they don't bring back "G-rated" Don Harris and his kiss-ass interviews with Pop.
"I'm embarrassing and distancing."
I don't think they'll bring back Don what with the radio station and tv station owned by two different companies after the end of the year. Don's show was the worst. I also checked out Eric's Myspace page. I'm still surprised that Vex and Walter were on again today. What do they have to do to get fired?
well, while looking for eric gray's myspace,
i found stacies!
stacie!
so it wasn't a total waste!
bout to wax my carrot,
i'm a dirty wabbit...
The sad part is, Vex and Walter will probably come out it with just a warning which is so wrong. And another sad part will be that others will just simply forget about it and let it slowly fade away...and they shouldn't. After Imus made his blunder, the media and press never let up. That is what the stations and paper here should do until they're fired.
when are sharpton and jackson scheduled to arrive?
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